What happens after the coroner is notified of a death?
The coroner will usually deal with the case in one of three ways. 1. He may make some telephone and/or other inquiries to satisfy himself that no inquest or post-mortem examination is necessary. If satisfied, he may issue a certificate that authorises the Registrar of Deaths to register the death and may authorise release of the body. This is commonly referred to as the Coroner’s Pink Form A procedure. 2. If the cause of death is unknown (e.g. because a doctor cannot certify a cause) the coroner may ask a pathologist to carry out an autopsy (post-mortem examination). If that reveals a natural cause of death and there is no reason to suspect that the death was violent or unnatural, the coroner may decide not to hold an inquest and will issue “Coroners Pink Form B”. This allows the death to be registered and the body to be released. 3. In all other circumstances, the coroner will usually open an inquest. It is usual for the body to be released promptly for burial or cremation even if the
